Gemini
by Perona Persona
Summary: Guarded and untrusting, twins Aoki and Izumi aren't used to people paying them much attention. Their lives are flipped upside down as the Host Club suddenly decides to take away the protective shell the twins have concealed themselves in. Soon everything about their past is exposed, and they'll learn whether or not they can truly trust people other than each other.
1. The Hosts

Redone, redid

I wasn't really with this chapter so I did my best to rewrite it and make it better.

Please forgive any mistakes.

Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC.

* * *

*Aoki*

The clock was mocking Aoki, she just knew it. Teasingly it slowly ticked through time, letting her know that it had no intention to let her out of class. Behind her girls were screaming and squealing in unison every five seconds or so. Aoki wished, and not for the first time, that the three hosts in the classroom would keep their charm reserved for their precious club…but no one listened to Aoki's wishes anyway.

Vzz Vzz Vzz

Half-mindedly Aoki reached for her phone as it vibrated in her pocket in an attempt to alert her to a new text message. Flipping the small blue piece of plastic she sighed in exasperation.

"This can't get any worse…" She grumbled to herself, flicking her pale brown hair back over her shoulder.

"Chu~" a muffled voice came from behind her.

"Haruhi, is that you girlfriend!" Several girls began asking as they most likely saw the same message Aoki had received.

Aoki hurriedly typed a reply before the demons known as fangirls noticed that she had also received a message.

'But Wednesdays are supposed to be your day off!'

Vz-

Aoki had opened the phone before it could even finish its first fit.

'Someone got sick and they need me. We can always use the extra cash.'

Aoki glared at her phone as if it could somehow travel to her twin before sighing and replying with a brief 'K' and firmly shoving it to the bottom of her bag. Her eyes wandered back to the clock in time for it to finally strike three. The bell rang shrilly throughout the school, scaring half of the girls in her class. She stood, throwing her bag over her shoulder and making a beeline towards the door before her fellow brunette could catch her.

"Aoki!"

"Crap…" Aoki grumbled before turning around to see a short cross-dresser running towards her, a pair of ginger twins following along grudgingly behind her.

It wasn't that Aoki necessarily disliked the shorter girl; it was that she simply didn't trust her. Because who would trust someone who willingly lied to an entire school just to get in tight with a group of good-looking guys?

Not Aoki, she liked to think that she had more sense than that.

"Yeah?" She murmured, doing her best to ignore the glares of Haruhi's little fan-club drilling into her.

The slightly shorter brunette stopped right beside her, giving her an apologetic smile.

"Did you get Izumi's text? She's got work until ten." Haruhi panted out.

Aoki reluctantly nodded, opening her mouth to reply only to be cut off by two pairs of arms wrapping around Haruhi. The owners of the arms openly glared at the green eyed girl.

"You know boss won't-"

"-like it if we're late."

"We better get going."

The twins began to subtly tug Haruhi away from Aoki.

Aoki rolled her eyes at the child-like possessiveness the two teens were broadcasting to everyone. The twins hadn't liked the small girl ever since she had walked into their school and had only gotten worse when they found out Aoki went to Haruhi's house after school and club activities. No matter how many times Aoki tried to explain to explain the situation, the twins simply refused to listen.

"Come on guys, stop." Haruhi huffed, pulling away from the gingers and shooting them a small glare. "I told you to stop this stupid behavior."

Aoki felt a small grin pick at the corner of her lips at the upset expressions the twins were wearing.

"Anyways," Haruhi straightened her jacket and turned back to the pale brunette. "Izumi texted me saying she was stuck at the restaurant until ten, so I was wondering if you wanted to just stay at the club room again today."

When Aoki had first started at Ouran her twin, Izumi, had also just started a new job at a high end restaurant that paid her more than the place she had been at. However that meant she had to work more hours which resulted in her not getting home until late at night. Worried about Aoki being at their shared apartment alone she had requested that Aoki stay with Haruhi during the evenings. Ranka, who Izumi used to work with, was over the moon excited for Haruhi to have female company over almost every single night, it also made him feel better about working the occasional late shift.

Do to this Aoki had become quite used to seeing the host club in action, however she usually chose to watch from her place in the back of the club room, where all their props and extra chairs were. The Hosts had gotten used to her, mostly, silent presence and didn't give her much thought after so many weeks. There were times when the self-proclaimed king would make an attempt at wooing her, but she was quick to shut him down. The only person she could usually be caught talking with was Haruhi, Honey, or very rarely, Kyoya.

"I was considering going to the gazebo…" Aoki sighed, running her hand through her pale brown hair and looking out the window.

"It's just that I noticed you forgot to bring lunch today. We're having those little sandwiches today at the club and I was curious if you'd want some. It'll be a few hours until we head back to my place." Haruhi explained.

Aoki was about to shoot down the idea altogether when her stomach decided to speak its opinion by gurgling loudly. A blush found its way on the pale girl's face before she sighed and nodded at the plan.

She was getting kinda hungry.

* * *

I do not in anyway, shape or form dislike Haruhi.

Thanks for reading!

:D


	2. The Waitress

Yay!

I rewrote this entire chapter becuase I wasn't particularly happy with it. I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

~Izumi~

It had been a long four hours since the last time Izumi had sat down like she was now. The kitchens were busy with attempting to get everything cleaned and ready before the next wave of customers came through. Izumi sighed and slumped back against the chair, her older coworker leaning out the open window to smoke a cigarette.

Her small pink phone started skittering around the table as it vibrated madly. She knew her sister was going to be upset with her, but when it came down to it they could always use the extra money to get by. The text was better than she expected it to be, a simple 'K' which stated the end of the conversation.

Tiredly Izumi shut her eyes, knowing full well that the little bell above the restaurant's door could go off and she'd have to be on her feet again. She was ready to go home, but knew that she had another seven hours until her shift was done.

"If you need to you can go home…" Her fellow waitress sighed, still upset at the afternoon's earlier events.

Peeking open a single green eye Izumi glanced at her blonde friend. The older woman's hair was coming out of its bun and Izumi knew that if she left the woman alone with customers for too long she would end up chasing them all out.

"And have your boyfriend get mad at me for leaving you alone? I don't think so." Izumi muttered knowing what the blonde would say before she even finished.

"And he won't be angry when he finds out what happened earlier?" Predictably the blonde bomb shell whirled around to glare at the younger waitress.

"Then just don't tell him." Izumi shrugged, a yawn breaking passed her lips.

Wisely the cooks and busboys began backing away from the argument that was about to unfold between the two. Izumi nearly chuckled at their expressions but chose not to, knowing that Renee would just rip into her.

"He's going to ask why someone is calling to complain about us." Renee hissed, hands on hips, her cigarette dangling precariously between her fingers over the tiled floors.

"You should probably put the out, Ree." Izumi murmured.

The taller woman flicked the half gone stick out the window before marching over and whacking Izumi over the head.

"You are just so…so….ugh! Why can't you just stick up for yourself! You know Hiro is going to flip his shit when he finds out how poorly you were treated!" Renee growled, throwing her hand into the air in frustration.

Izumi finally threw herself to her feet, staring up at the blonde fearlessly.

"I've told you guys before, it doesn't bug me! You guys are always making such a big deal out of nothing!" She replied easily. "Really, I've had worse said then 'You're ugly.'"

"You can't just let someone walk all over you Izz!" Renee began whining, collapsing onto the chair across from her friend.

Following Renee's actions Izumi sat back down, relaxing again. Idly she rubbed her thumb over her cheek several times.

The scar taken up residence on her face several years back, and she was accustomed to seeing it like she was used to seeing her eyes, or nose. It had bugged her at first, the constant worrying the people were staring at it, but very quickly she got over it. She accepted the long line that traced a diagonal line from her hairline to her chin, skimming over her nose and catching the side of her lips. People staring or pointing it out to her didn't affect her any longer, and she simply chose to ignore the impolite people that made rude remarks about it.

However, from the very second she had started at the restaurant Renee and Hiro, the owner and head chief, had acted like her bodyguards, blatantly yelling and then kicking out anyone who made a mean remark.

Izumi had told them on several occasions that she didn't care and that it didn't bother her, but the two were fierce in their promise to defend her…even if they were twenty years older than her.

"I'm telling you; let's not even mention it to Hiro." Izumi sighed, running her hand through her ponytail. "He has enough on his plate with Kaida out sick for the rest of the week."

Renee rolled her gray eyes before leaning back into her chair.

Sensing the brief spat was over the kitchen staff deemed it safe to return to their positions around the two waitresses. Izumi once more let her eyes drift shut, knowing that because she came into work on her day off, she was missing out on catching up on sleep. She had become accustomed to having at the least Wednesdays off to recuperate and relax. Now she was going to be lucky if she found a spare moment between now and next Wednesday. It was a small price she had to pay if she could keep the small studio her and her sister had been living in for the past two years.

Once more Izumi thanked her lucky stars that she had managed to get through the stream of jobs she'd had the first year. A steady process of getting a job and working for a while only for someone to realize she was younger then she originally claimed and then getting fired. She had been wise enough to not put down her real address, so whenever social services came to get her, she was never in the place she said she was.

Izumi would be the first to admit that Aoki was the smarter out of the two of them, but she had quite a few tricks up her sleeve as well.

She just hoped she never had to use them.

* * *

I tried to make her as unmary-sue-ish as possible. I do have a reason as to how she's working at such a young age, which is explained later in the story.

Please review!

Thanks for reading :D


	3. Complications

Redid, Redone.

* * *

*Aoki*

If Aoki ever had to choose a single place at Ouran Academy that she liked the most, she would almost always say the Host Club's back room. It was commonly used as their storage area where they'd keep their costumes and props for certain themes. It was cluttered and hardly anyone ventured into it unless Tamaki or Honey needed naps, in which case the bed at the very front of the room was where they were found.

Aoki enjoyed the very back of the room, passed suits of armors and a large fake tree, near the kotatsus where she could burrow under the warm fabric and do her homework in peace. This is where she was found on this particular day, madly scribbling down answers to her math questions. Earlier in the hour she had finished her literature and still had to do her history work before she could truly relax for the day.

She was completely enthralled into her work that she didn't hear the quick footsteps until someone knocked over one of Tamaki's fake swords. Green eyes glanced up in time to catch the shortest member of the Host club rounding the corner, cake in hand.

"Sup Honey?" the younger girl asked quietly, smiling as he placed the cake in front of her.

She knew without even asking that it was black forest cake, her favorite. The cake had earned the nickname of 'bribe cake' due to the fact that it was the only reason Honey was so close to the underclassman. Every day for a week he would purposely search out Aoki and give her a slice, while she was eating it they would talk some and slowly he had managed to squirm his way passed her first line of defense: Silence. Even though Aoki would never admit it, she had a soft spot for the short blonde, as he reminded her of the little kids she used to help take care of.

"Shouldn't you be with your clients and Mori?" Aoki asked softly as she nibbled on her cake.

"The girls had to leave early, and Takashi wanted to make sure his brother wasn't pushing himself too hard at practice today." Honey claimed, leaning back onto his arms and stretching his legs out.

"Didn't Satoshi just get out of his cast a couple days ago?" Aoki choked startled at the middle schooler's bravery. "He's gonna get himself hurt!"

Honey laughed at Aoki's expression, amused as she revealed the tiny part of her caring personality.

"That's exactly was Takashi was worried about, so he went to go check on him."

Aoki nodded in understand before going back to eating her cake greedily.

"Honey-sempai? Are you in here?" Haruhi's voice echoed through the room, catching their attention.

"Back here Haruhi-chan!" Honey yelled, jumping up and waving cheerfully over the boxed that blocked them from view. "We'll be up there in a second!"

Aoki sighed as Honey involved her in emerging from the room and swallowed her last bite of cake. Her homework was now riddled with crumbs and she sighed knowing that her teachers would be upset with her. Honey grabbed up her empty plate and waited for her to pack up and stand before taking off. Aoki followed along at a slower pace, picking up the items that he occasionally knocked over.

"Ah, my beautiful Aoki-kun!" A wild Tamaki appeared, grabbing her hand before she had a chance to process what he was doing.

When her brain finally clicked Aoki scowled darkly at him and pulled her hand away, fighting down the blush that overcame her cheeks.

"Tamaki-sempai, I told you to leave Aoki alone." Haruhi sighed, shaking her head as the older boy crawled into a corner and started growing mushrooms.

"Are we leaving now?" Aoki sighed grumpily.

"Well actually-"

"We were wondering if you beautiful ladies would give us the pleasure of attending dinner with us." Tamaki squealed, grabbing her hand and wrapping his other arm around Haruhi.

Aoki's face crinkled up again and she shoved the older boy away from her for the second time. She had no patience for the tall blonde's crazy, flirtatious antics and had attempted to tell him this every time he thought it was a good idea to approach her. He had yet to take the hint.

"We go every Wednesday and Haruhi has yet to accompany us." Kyoya expanded further, not even glancing up from his little black book.

Haruhi, who had already disengaged from the blonde second year, gave the other boys a shrug.

"I can't afford to go every Wednesday." Haruhi grumbled. "Besides, Wednesday the teachers assign the most homework.

"We'll pay for you Haruhi-"

"-The food is really good."

The twins wrapped themselves around the smaller girl and in the moment of distraction Aoki took her chance to attempt and leave. It didn't much matter if Haruhi went or not, she for sure knew that she couldn't afford to pay for the expensive restaurant the rich kids probably went to. The pale haired girl knew that the five thirty train would drop her off at her apartment. She'd rather risk her twin's wrath then have to go to dinner with the uppity boys.

"Ai-chan!" A cheering Honey immediately glomped her, clinging to her back like a tiny primate. "You're going to come with us, right?"

Chocolate eyes peered straight into her soul pleadingly and she fought back her instinct to just give in to him.

"I have no money Honey." She muttered, watching as Tamaki cuddled his 'daughter' while whining.

"My parents gave me extra cake money today! I can pay for you!" Honey reasoned, sending a charming smile to his friend over her shoulder.

Aoki opened her mouth to decline politely when Haruhi appeared next to her.

"You wanna go?" She asked curiously. "I'll go too, but I don't wanna just abandon you."

Aoki stared at the brunette before sighing in defeat and nodding her consent.

"Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!" An excited Tamaki skipped around the large room, throwing flower petals into the air in excitement. "Haruhi and I are going out on a date!"

Aoki blinked in surprise when Honey's weight disappeared from her back. Whirling around her eyes met with a blue uniform. Glancing up she saw Honey being settled onto his cousin's shoulders.

"You need to be careful who you jump on, Mitskuni." The tall dark haired man claimed. "Not everyone is used to it and you could hurt somebody."

A teary eyed Honey looked down at his now shorter friend, sticking out his upper lip.

"It's fine Honey," Aoki sighed as she began following Haruhi out of the doors. "You didn't hurt me."

Kyoya had taken the lead with the twins and Tamaki openly mauling Haruhi, Aoki found herself walking directly in front of the cousins in a relaxing silence. The outside was being ravaged by autumn winds and Aoki shivered as soon as she stepped out. She quickly pulled her jacket from her bag, placing the warm black fabric over her. She blinked in surprise and then smiled some when she witnessed Tamaki offer his own jacket to Haruhi who gave a grateful 'thanks' and threw it on.

Aoki couldn't help but think the blush on the blonde's cheeks to be adorable as he gave Haruhi a smile. Even the icy green eyed girl could admit that they would make a cute couple.

"The food there is delicious! We go every Wednesday after club hours!" Honey cheered for the sixth time as the limo rolled down the street. "I think I'm gonna get the spicy enchiladas tonight."

Aoki quirked an eyebrow at the smaller boys random urges for spicy foods. Her mouth turned up in a smile and she glanced back out the window, recognizing the landmarks of the city. An unsettling feeling crawled into her stomach as the limo started to slow as the approached a familiar restaurant. Haruhi seemed to notice as well, biting her lip and looking at her pale haired companion.

"This is the restaurant you come to every Wednesday?" She murmured to the blonde to her right.

His reply was to nod excitedly.

"We wouldn't expect you to know it-"

"-It is pretty high class."

Aoki glared at the twins, but bit her tongue.

It would make sense that the club didn't know since they came every Wednesday.

She hurriedly texted her sister not to come out to serve the table coming in, but she received no reply. Aoki shakily got out of the limo and followed the group, relieved as she didn't see her sister in the restaurant.

'Don't come out.' She sent again.

A blonde waitress she only vaguely recognized greeted them, eyes only for the boys of her group. Aoki assumed that it was Izumi's friend Renee. She followed at a snail's pace.

"Your waitress will be out in a moment." The blonde grinned, practically skipping away.

"Ai-chan, are you ok?" Honey's voice chimed from her right.

Nodding and looking at her hands Aoki desperately waited for her sister's reply that she got the message. Her stomach sank as a familiar voice greeted them, and she looked up to find her twin smiling at them cheerily. Her green eyes skipped around the table before they finally landed on her and Haruhi.

"Ao…ki?" Izumi murmured.

* * *

Drama!

I tried to get the story started right on point as best as possible so you didn't have to put up with a slow build up.

Thanks for reading

:P


	4. Confrontations

~Izumi*Aoki~

Everything had been calm for the past hour. Like any other weekday the dinner hour was very slow. The serene atmosphere however, turned crazy the moment Renee noticed the clock.

"Oh god! They're going to be here any minute!" The blonde screeched, shooting up from her sitting position and began running her hands through her ponytail and began primping and preening herself.

"What are you going on about now?" Izumi grumbled as she watched her friend.

"Every Wednesday the most handsome group of men I have seen in my life come in. They always arrive here about this time." She finally decided just to pull out her pony tail and redo it. "Hiro is so lucky that I am a faithful woman, because if I wasn't…"

Izumi shuttered at the thought her coworker had just put into her head. Renee whirled around, facing the smaller girl and then almost tackling her.

"We have to get you all dolled up!" She cheered, roughly pulling Izumi's own ponytail out.

Across the room Izumi's small pink cell began to vibrate madly, but Renee refused to let her go.

"Your sister can wait! I am determined that you make a good impression on these boys!" Expertly she tossed Izumi's hair into a neat bun, leaving out a small strand of hair.

Izumi lightly hit her friend's hands away, shooting up to put some distance between them.

"I am not here to impress anyone Renee." She sighed crossing her arms and glaring. "I mean have you seen my face? I've got no cover-up on today."

Effectively put off, the older woman crossed her arms and looked away. The small square that let the workers peek into the dining room took her interest away and her face began to shine brightly again. She quickly scurried away from the kitchens and into the dining room. Her high pitched voice could be heard as she loudly greeted someone.

Rolling her eyes again Izumi started for the table that held her small phone as it continued to vibrate. Aoki's name was flashing across the screen repeatedly, but right before she could grab it Renee had returned.

"I told them you'd be out any second!" the blonde giggled, shoving her fellow waitress towards the swinging doors. "Get out there and shake your money maker!"

Izumi pasted a smile onto her face as she entered the dining area, expertly picking out the new group of customers. They were wearing vaguely familiar uniforms and as she made her way over she tried to place where she'd seen them before.

"Hello I'll be you waitress today, what can I get you for drinks." She cheeped happily, glancing around at the faces.

They were very handsome she could admit, but her gaze locked onto the two most familiar faces.

"Ao...ki?" she stuttered as she saw her twin sitting next to a small blonde boy and Haruhi.

Her brain clicked on what uniforms they were all wearing and she immediately felt shame at being caught like this by her sister's friends. Aoki's embarrassed face screamed everything she needed to know and she quickly bowed in apology and ran back towards the kitchens.

"Ai-chan! That girl looked just like you!" Honey claimed eyes wide.

Shame at embarrassing her twin flooded through Aoki's veins and she dropped her head into her hands. Haruhi timidly patted her back as she heard the twins' laughter begin echoing through the restaurant.

"Is that your sister Aoki?" Kaoru laughed.

"What happened to her face?" Hikaru mocked.

Without even knowing it Aoki had reached across the table and had the older twin's shirt in her fisted hands. The sound of a fist meeting flesh echoed louder than Aoki figured it would and her vision cleared from its reddened state to see Kaoru holding his older brother with Hikaru holding his injured cheek, both glaring at the small girl.

Reassuring hands found their way onto Aoki's shoulders and she whirled to find emerald eyes staring at her. Izumi gently pulled her sister away from the stares that had found their way to them back towards where Aoki assumed the kitchens were. She hadn't even realized tears of anger had begun leaking out of her eyes until she found herself sitting on a chair with Izumi wiping them away. The blonde waitress stood behind them glaring angrily and Aoki felt another wave of shame come over her as she figured she'd just gotten her sister fired.

"Do you want me to knock them around some more, Izumi?" the woman asked seriously. "I don't care who they're the children of, I will kick them out without a second's hesitation."

A warm mug of what Aoki assumed was milk was placed into her shaking hands and she glanced up into her twin's kinder eyes.

"No that's fine. I think Aoki got him pretty good." Izumi chuckled, smiling.

"Sorry…" Aoki murmured, looking down into the cup ashamed.

"It's fine. You're going to have to apologize sometime, but I know what you were doing." Izumi soothed. "Now you stay back here. I'll have the chiefs make you something and then you can wait for me to get off of work."

There was a tense air between the two for a second.

"I'm sorry I embarrassed you." They said at the same time.

Both glanced at each other in shock before smiling in the same way and laughing.

"I didn't mean to let your friends see me working such an embarrassing job. I know it's hard to go to school with rich kids whose parents are like gods." Izumi murmured.

Aoki shook her head furiously laying her hand over her sister's.

"I'm sorry that they looked at you so rudely just because of your scar. I know it bugs you." Aoki claimed, glancing down.

Izumi rolled her eyes but smiled and hugged her sister.

"I'm fine. I promise." She murmured.

There was silence for beat until Renee started squealing furiously.

"You two are so adorable!" She claimed, appearing to dab at the tears in her eyes.

Izumi rolled her eyes and Aoki blushed slightly.

"Just ignore her." Izumi whispered.

The younger twin stood up from her squatted position and whirled to face a dark haired man.

"Caine! Make my sister whatever she wants." She said before turning to her sister again. "I've gotta run back out there, but they'll take care of you back here. Right, Renee?"

The blonde haired woman nodded excitedly, reminding Aoki of a female Tamaki. Izumi straightened her uniform and took in a large breath before walking back into the dining room. She threw out apologies to the few customers still eating, all of which were probably ignored, before she made it back to the table of students. Neither twin would look her in the eye which vaguely amused her.

"Alright, now that that's all out of the way, what can I get you for drinks?" She asked cheerfully.

No one answered her, choosing instead to just stare at her.

"I'll take strawberry lemonade, please Izumi." Haruhi claimed breaking the awkward silence.

"Okay Haruhi." Izumi nodded, scribbling on her notepad.

The blonde to her left reached out and grabbed her hand delicately.

"Oh beautiful and gorgeous Izumi-chan, would you please accept my humblest apologies for the twin's cruel behavior." He asked dramatically, kneeling onto one knee in front of her.

"Oh…umm…sure?" Izumi squeaked, making it sound more like a question.

"Tamaki-sempai!" Haruhi growled. "I told you not bring it back up!"

The brunette slapped the blonde over the head and glared him into the corner of the restaurant. Izumi watched curiously as he began to grow mushrooms and tried to figure out how he did so.

"Genmaicha tea, please." A dark haired boy wearing glasses sighed out, also staring at the blonde in the corner.

"Does he do that often?" She asked off hand as she wrote down chocolate milk for the smaller blonde and Green tea for another dark haired boy.

"You'd be surprised, Iz." Haruhi muttered as she sighed and turned away. "Is Aoki in the kitchen?"

Frowning slightly Izumi nodded her head before turning her attention to the twins who had yet to give her a drink. One of them slowly met her eyes before looking down quickly.

"I'm not gonna punch you if that's what you're worried about." She sighed, placing a hand on her hip and giving them a small smile. "I've had worse said. Trust me."

"You are as forgiving as you are lovely!" The blonde cheered appearing next to her again.

"You I might punch." She muttered as the boy turned to ashes and blew away.

Shaking her head she turned back to the gingers.

"If you don't stop pouting and give me an answer I'll put you down for something awful and bitter." She claimed.

"We'll both take a soda." One of them finally said softly.

Nodding Izumi turned and started away.

Aoki was sitting in the kitchen twiddling with her thumbs as the blonde waitress named Renee fluttered around, directing people here and there. Her milk was nearly gone and she could almost smell her spaghetti cooking. She gave Izumi a smile as she bustled passed, and felt a note of anger and pride as her sister got the rude rich boys' drink, but kept her head held high despite that. The older twin hated it when anyone teased or ridiculed her sister for her scar, something that used to be so sensitive to her sister's self-esteem. Izumi had outgrown the shame of her appearance, but Aoki had yet to outrun the eternal anger she had when someone said something about it.

"I should've known you'd get spaghetti." Her sister laughed as the dark haired chief placed the plate in front of her.

Aoki smiled as her sister teased her lightly. Izumi had disappeared out the door and came back a moment after. Plopping down next to her sister they took turns munching on the delicious pasta. Aoki had been wary about her sister appearing lazy in front of the blond, who Aoki assumed was the boss by how she was ordering people around, but Renee simply rolled her eyes and smile some. The twins sat in silence until Izumi stood back up and sauntered out of the kitchen into the dining room.

Aoki had never been able to figure out how her sister dealt with so many hours at a nonstop pace. The older twin could hardly handle school and homework, but her sister somehow could shoot through a thirteen hour shift for five days a week and still manage to keep their home clean and Aoki in nice clothing.

Sometimes Aoki wondered if her sister used some of her old connections to keep them afloat financially, but she knew he sister wouldn't ever do that. There were to many things that could go wrong if they were found out and her sister would never risk their safety like that.

"Haruhi wants to know if you want to go back to her house to wait for me to get out of work." Izumi said as Aoki finished her third cup of warm milk.

Her mind was beginning to slow as she became drowsy, but she wasn't so far gone that she would get back into a limo with those assholes. Shaking her head she said a quiet 'no' and proceeded to lay her head onto the table.

Izumi watched her tired twin shake her head and lay down. Izumi smiled and rubbed her back before exiting to the dining room. All of her customers had already left except for the seven that were still finishing up their meals. Haruhi met her green eyes questioningly.

"She said no thanks." Izumi said lightly. "She'll just wait with me until my shift gets over."

"But Izumi, that's not for another three hours." Haruhi frowned, not enjoying the thought of Aoki brooding in the kitchens without hearing her apologies.

"It'll be fine Haruhi." Izumi claimed smiling. "She's tired anyone and will probably just sleep for the rest of the time. No use in dragging my unconscious sister back to your house."

Haruhi nodded her head as Izumi giggled.

"We'll be paying with credit today." The dark haired man claimed, his glasses glinting as he handed the pale brunette a shiny card.

Izumi nodded and scurried off, leaving the group to sit in silence.

"You really shouldn't have said those things." Haruhi growled quietly.

Neither twin acknowledged her scolding, choosing to glare firmly at the ground.

Izumi returned quickly smiling and telling them goodbye. They left in silence and crawled into Kyouya's limo. The air was tense and everyone felt nervous to speak up to the angry girl in front of them. Haruhi glared out the window, disappointed in her friends and their behavior.

"Haruhi, how did Izumi-chan get that scar?" Honey asked quietly.

Turning her brown eyes onto the small blonde she shrugged.

"I don't know. They're not the most open of people." Haruhi responded softly. "I've known them ever since they first moved here, and still I don't know hardly anything about them."

Shocked into silence no one said a word for the rest of the ride, the only sound coming from Kyouya's laptop as he clicked away.


	5. Awkward Storms

Izumi felt a shiver of delight run down her spine as her emerald eyes tracked the brewing storm outside the kitchen window. Somewhere in her mind she realized that she should probably be worried about her twin and Haruhi, both of who were absolutely terrified of the thunder and lightning but she assured her more motherly side that they were completely unaware of it all. They sat snug as two bed bugs in blankets as classical music poured from the speakers Izumi had set up when she had first arrived to the small home, being assured by Haruhi's father that he didn't mind them spending the night since he had been the one to ask if they'd come over.

Once more the transvestite was stuck at the bar and had texted the girl in request that she head over to the Fujioka's small apartment to make sure his daughter would be fine. It had become a routine every time a storm rolled into the area and it never took much persuading to get Aoki to come along with her. The foremost reason the older twin came was because she felt less cowardly and childish if someone else was suffering from the same affliction.

Outside headlights flashed as some stray soul passed by the building in an attempt to go home. Izumi watch the lights disappear before glancing at the small pot of cooking pasta sitting on the stove. None of the three girls were very picky on what they wanted to eat and so Izumi had opted for the safe and easy option of spaghetti.

The lights flickered over her head briefly and she quickly went into the living area to check on the two other occupants. Both gazed at her with startled eyes, their shared homework sitting dully on the small table. Izumi gave them both a reassuring smile as she shut the small paper door to kitchen, hoping the noodles wouldn't boil away while she wasn't paying attention.

"How about we shut off the lights and burn some candles? That way we can't see the lights flickering." She suggested lightly.

Without speaking all three of them moved around the small room grabbing the little wax objects and began lighting the wicks. When they deemed that they had enough Izumi took it upon herself to shut off the lights and smiled when the room stayed pretty well lit.

"I'm almost done with supper, and then we can watch a movie." She let them know soothingly, used to the situation after a year or so.

Not waiting for them to acknowledge her words she took the few steps back into the kitchen, taking a cautious glanced at the stove. She noted happily that the food was still safe and the fire still burning strong. The light haired girl leaned against the counter and glanced out the window again.

A minute later there was harsh banging on the door, startling her and the two in the living area. Attempting to calm her now puttering heart she creeped towards the door warily. Someone banged on the door again making her jump. She heard Haruhi and Aoki make their way into the kitchen in curiosity. Someone was yelling something that couldn't be heard over the loud music and storm that were cancelling out any other sounds. Cautiously Izumi reached out and undid the latch, turning the knob slowly.

"Oh Haruhi! Daddy knew you would be scared during this storm so he came to take care of you!" A blonde figure immediately tackled the slight brunette to the ground.

The man began to rub his head affectionately on her cheek as several other people peeked into the small home.

"It appears like you leapt before looking again, Tamaki." A cold voice commented, making the blonde freeze in his affections.

Green eyes met purple making the blonde host king leap away in shock. Aoki and Haruhi shot the host club equal looks of hostility.

"What are you doing here?" Haruhi cried out indignantly. "It's seven o'clock at night! You can't just show up like this!"

"But my Daughter!" Tamaki sobbed as he attempted to latch on the dark haired girl.

Aoki caught the vibrant eyes of her younger twin, twitching her head towards the doorway that showed a light rain. Izumi let out a sigh but nodded, knowing her sister was uncomfortable of the group and would rather brave the storm at night than be around them. Side-by-side they began to edge around the good-looking group.

"Aoki, where are you going?" A small blonde latched onto Izumi's arm, staring into her face.

"I'm Izumi." Said twin claimed, giving the small blonde a smile.

"We're headed home, Honey." Aoki explained as she grabbed the hand attached to the arm Honey was clinging to.

Izumi allowed her older sister to tug her towards the door, only stopping to flinch when there was a loud crack of thunder. Frowning the younger twin pulled her sister back some as the rain picked back up.

"Aoki…You guys can stay. I'll just have these idiot leave." Haruhi said eyes wide as she gazed at the storm brewing outside her home.

"That was rude." Kyoya claimed as he smirked and began scribbling on in his notebook.

"If they wanna leave let them go." One of the ginger twins claimed snobbishly his cheek still slightly swollen from Wednesday.

Biting her lip Izumi glanced around the tense room before her mind finally came to decision. Squeezing her twin's had she stepped forward slightly and shut the door, latching it firmly.

"That's okay, Rue." She claimed lightly. "I made enough spaghetti. We should at least let them eat something for coming out all this way to check up on you."

Aoki glared at the floor unhappily, squeezing her sister's hand like it was a lifeline. The younger twin took a hesitant step forward and gave a softer smile.

"We probably got off on the wrong foot guys. My name is Izumi and it's nice to meet you." She claimed softly.

"Hi Izumi! My name is Mitskuni! But you can call me Honey!" the small blonde claimed happily, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

"It's very nice to meet you Honey."

The elder brunette huffed some before turning and storming into the living area to curl up underneath her previously abandoned blanket. From her spot she could hear her twin talking and greeting the Hosts. She snarled angrily, not to mention loudly, when Hikaru coldly dismissed her twin.

"Hikaru!" She heard Haruhi hiss angrily. "I swear if you don't knock this off I'm going to kick you out!"

Peeking from her sitting point she could see Kaoru scolding his twin and Tamaki apologizing to Izumi, who was taking it all good naturedly.

The younger twin's eyes shot open in surprise however when she suddenly remembered the pasta that was still on the stove top. Quickly she shoved passed everyone and pulled it off just in time to avoid it from burning besides a couple noodles. She shooed everyone into the living room as she scurried around grabbing plates, warning them to be careful of the candles that were still lit and burning.

Haruhi and Honey sat on either side of Aoki, acting like mediator in case she grew to angered. Aoki was busy glaring angrily at all of them, Mori, Honey and Haruhi excluding. Tamaki kept flinching every time her glassy green eyes met his and he kept trying to make light conversation with everyone, but no one was willing to in the awkward atmosphere.

The only sound that could be heard was Izumi piling spaghetti onto plates and the now lowered volume of the classical music. Aoki and Haruhi kept flinching every time the thunder outside boomed, which all of the Hosts frowned at.

"You dad texted and said that because of the storm the bar is full. He's not gonna be home until four or five." Izumi told Haruhi as she walked into the room with plates of spaghetti balanced on her arms precariously.

Once everyone had been served Izumi took a spot in between two dark haired hosts, blinking at everyone as an awkward silence invaded the air and attempted to strangle everyone. Aoki shot her sister a bland look as the younger twin began to respond to Tamaki's light conversation with equally forced lightness. After about ten minutes Haruhi had seemed to finally have enough, putting her plate onto the floor with a loud 'CLANK' and forcing everyone's attention to her.

"Alright, that's enough." She ground out, glaring around the room. "this is going to end now. Hikaru, Kaoru, apologize to Izumi and Aoki! Aoki, apologize to Hikaru and Kaoru. I've had enough of this silent war."

The ginger twins narrowed their eyes slightly as Haruhi began glaring them down.

The elder brunette twin twisted her mouth like she had tasted something sour before letting her expression go blank.

"I'm sorry for punching you and yelling at you." She ground out through gritted teeth.

Izumi shot her twin a thankful look, only distracted when Haruhi glared harshly at the twins.

"You have three seconds before I throw you out." She hissed angrily. "I've had it with this childish attitude. Aoki already apologized now it's your turn.

"We're sorry, Aoki, Izumi." The younger of the gingers sighed.

"Hikaru" Haruhi said, staring down the elder ginger.

"This is stupid. She shouldn't be so sensitive about her face if she's not gonna cover it up." Hikaru claimed angrily, choosing to glare at Aoki.

"My sister wasn't even the one who was mad about it!" Aoki growled as she clenched her fists. "She came right back out and treated you nicely."

There was a momentarily silent standoff between the twins, their younger counterparts staring at them warily.

"Aoki, I'm fine, really."

"Hikaru, just say sorry!"

The two younger twins glanced at each other before turning eyes back to their clones.

"Fine."

"Sorry."

At that point the Host club was confused on what had just happened in front of their eyes, but then awkward tension was gone, replaced by a semi-peaceful air.

Outside there was a crash of thunder. Aoki and Haruhi jumped into the air, latching onto each other in mutual fear.

"Aoki is scared if storms too" An innocent Honey questioned as Kyoya once more began to chuckle and scribble in his notebook.

* * *

AN:

You guys do not even understand how horrible this was to write. The whole chapter started off OK to me, but then just got really awkward, really fast. So I apologize if it sucks hard core, but I had to write a chapter that kinda fixed what happened in last chapeter.

Blah.

Thanks for reading!

Review if you can! 3


	6. The Situation

Aoki was vaguely unsettled as she watched her sister dance around Haruhi's small kitchen. She was doing that _thing_ that Aoki hated, the fake smiles and laughter. Honey had latched himself to her back as she served the ice cream from the freezer. The small blonde bundle of cheer was talking off her sister's ear. It wasn't the artificial joy that her sister was displaying that was making her uncomfortable though. Aoki had seen her sister do things like that so many times that it was like a play she had watched a hundred times.

It was Kyoya's dark eyes watching both sisters that made the pit of Aoki's stomach drop. There was a look of knowledge about him that made her wonder how far into their past he'd managed to find. It was all she could do to keep herself calm and not drag her sister away from the suspicious looks he kept sending her. Izumi may have been the one who worked to keep them both safe, but Aoki was still the elder twin and by that right, she was still overly protective of her younger clone.

"Aoki? Are you ok?" Haruhi's soft voice asked to her left.

Aoki dragged her eyes away from her sister and met the doe eyes of her kinda friend.

"Are you ok?" Haruhi repeated, watching the taller girl wearily.

"Yeah. I'm just tired." Aoki lied easily, turning her attention back to her sister who had sat down with a bowl of ice cream in her hands.

Izumi gave her sister a small genuine smile before beginning to quietly munch on her ice cream.

"Izumi, why don't you go to school with Aoi?" Honey asked curiously as he watch the younger twin with giant eyes.

Aoki noticed that slight twinge in her sister's jaw, the only indication that the question caught her off guard.

"I'm not very smart like Aoki," Izumi began honestly. "So I just didn't receive a scholarship like her."

"That's funny; I don't recall seeing an application for you in the school's data base." Kyoya said airily as he smiled threateningly at the younger twin.

Again the twitch in her jaw, only noted by her older sister.

"I didn't send one in." Izumi claimed sweetly. "I don't like being in competition with my sister, so I figured I shouldn't."

"Why would it be a competition if you aren't intelligent like your sister?"

"Kyoya!"

"Mon ami!"

"Do you want me to slap you?"

Izumi gave the three upset teens an affectionate smile as she allowed the insult to roll off of her. Aoki watched with anger as her sister turned back to the dark haired Shadow King.

"You never know what can sway the judgment of a person." She answered him simply. "And anyways I just didn't get into Ouran. It's no skin off my nose either, although I would do like knowing the people my sister spends her time with."

Aoki rolled her eyes at her sister's motherly words. Izumi was only two hours younger than her older counterpart, but she always acted like a mother hen; constantly clucking over her sister.

"You should come visit us at the Host club sometime!" Honey suggested cheerfully. "We can eat cake together."

"I would love to. If I ever get some time off of work I'll be sure to drop by." Izumi said calmly.

"Do you work a lot, Izu?" Honey asked curiously.

"Oh…Yeah kind of." Izumi nodded slowly. "It just helps out around the house."

"Where do your parents work?"

There was a beat of silence as both twins froze up, their minds flying around for excuses and reasons for their odd predicament.

"They're…business entrepreneurs…" Aoki lied half-heartedly.

"I would like nothing more than to meet the lovely parents of yours." Tamaki said, striking what he believed was a charming pose.

Green eyes clashed together, communicating equal distress.

"They travel a lot." Izumi said, never taking her eyes of her twin. "Probably won't be back for a few months."

Aoki saw Kyoya smirk slightly at the lie, but she chose to just ignore him and hope that he wouldn't out their predicament to his friends. Tamaki was nodding eagerly like he knew exactly what they were talking about while the rest of the group shot each other slightly suspicious looks around the small room.

"What exactly do they do?" Kyoya asked, shattering the tense staring contest between the twins.

"Marketing." Aoki blurted her first idea.

"Kyoya, why are you laughing?" Tamaki asked curiously.

The Shadow King was quietly chuckling at their less than believable lies, making the eldest nearly explode in anger. She didn't appreciate his laughing at their expense or his finding the loose ends of their lies only to yank the web apart.

"I find it amusing how you two are so determined to lie to us." The dark haired male announced, bringing a round of silence to the group. "We're not that stupid you know."

Aoki's fists clenched and she forced herself to bite her tongue to stop the words of anger to come falling out. She knew that her threats and bitterness would only upset Izumi further.

"We don't know what you're talking about." Izumi sniffed delicately. "I would appreciate it if you would refrain from calling my sister and me liars."

Izumi gathered up the dirty dishes to take them into the kitchen, shutting the door behind her and stranding Aoki in the room with the looks of suspicion. Haruhi was shaking her head in pity at her, knowing that there wasn't much she could do to save her.

"I did some digging you know?" Kyoya began, resting his head onto his hand. "There is nothing anywhere about you two. The address you've listed on your student profile leads to a small post office next to your sister's place of employment."

"Can't you let sleeping dogs lie?" Aoki growled out. "We're not doing anything bad, so just let it go."

"It is the concern of the Host club when you pull one of our members into your little schemes."

"There is no scheme." Aoki hissed. "We're just trying to get by."

The sound of plates falling to the floor made every wrapped up in the tense atmosphere jump in fright. Aoki threw her blankets off of her small form and was on her feet before anyone else could react. Izumi's form was hutched over a pile of porcelain, her hand bleeding from the white edged scratch on her palm.

"What happened?" Haruhi asked, quietly thankful for the distraction from the previous argument.

"Sorry Haru." Izumi sent her friend a small smile as she tilted her head towards a second figure in the room that was balancing delicately on heels. "Wasn't expecting your dad to walk in when he did."

Several pairs of eyes stared at the tall transvestite that was fuming in the corner of the kitchen.

"I didn't mean to bump into you Izu…I'm so sorry." He sobbed dramatically.

The corners of Aoki's mouth twitched at the overdramatic man. Izumi stood up and reached her arm out to pat him on the shoulder comfortingly. There was a tense atmosphere in the kitchen as everyone remained rooted in their spots, not quite sure how to act around each other.

"Did I hear arguing going on before I came in?" A now recovered Ryuji asked curiously as he helped to gather the porcelain piece from the floor. "Were you arguing with my girls Tamaki?"

The accused blonde whimpered and ran off to his corner to hide from the flare that was being sent in his direction. Aoki saw her sister laugh at the blonde antics and felt a small ball of fury unwind from her stomach. Izumi just had a natural relaxing aura around her.

"Ryuji, you wouldn't perhaps be aware that these two girls are not who they say they are?"

Kyoya's words made a fresh wave of frustration wash over Aoki. It seemed the tall male wasn't planning on letting the topic go. There was an aura of reassurance wafting off of Haruhi's dad as he slowly turned towards Kyoya.

"I am aware that these two are going through tough times." Ryuji shrugged easily. "I try not pry into intimate things."

Aoki rolled her eyes at this, distinctly remembering the man pleading and questioning everything about them. She glanced over to her sister in time to see the younger twin throwing the plate shards away.

"I don't see what is so interesting about them, Kyoya."

"They're obviously no threat to us so maybe you should just let it go."

Aoki twitched at the veiled insult, throwing a glare towards the twins who had been uncommonly quiet after their initial argument. The two gingers smirked and shrugged their shoulders smugly.

"I don't appreciate having a liability in our school." Kyoya claimed loftily. "If we don't know anything about them how can we trust them? People with shady pasts bring nothing but trouble to people like us."

Aoki and Izumi both opened their mouths to shoot back an insult only to be beat by Haruhi.

"Then it's a good thing I'm not socialite like you are." The shorter brunette growled. "What is your guys' problem with them? If it's not the twins' insults, then it's you and your constant prying."

The small group of Hosts just stared at the united front of brunettes that stood before them. Izumi straightened her spine and met the dark eyes of the resident Shadow King.

"We have a bad past, one we don't like to talk about. However I can promise you that we are not a threat to any of you. We're simply trying to live." She said determined.

There was a beat of silence before a small blonde blur of cheer tackled both twins to the ground, nuzzling his cheek onto their shoulders. Two pairs of green eyes met over Honey's head, worries being conveyed without words. Aoki dragged her eyes to Kyoya's, nearly flinching at the chill they gave off.

He wasn't going to give up so easily in his quest for answers and knowledge.

* * *

This was so difficult :'(

I feel this might possibly be the worse chapter ever...So sorry is in advance.

Thanks for reading!

Review if you can

3


	7. Familiarity

Izumi didn't like open spaces and large groups of people, something about them always sent her heart into a tizzy that she could only calm by occasionally sitting down and taking deep breaths. So it wasn't surprising that her shopping trips to the department store for groceries always left her slightly on edge, something Haruhi had noticed almost right away. She didn't ask questions but did her best to stay glued to the older girl and stay away from the crowded areas. It was fairly common for the department store to be mostly bare when they found themselves in it. Most people preferred the grocery store that sat two blocks away, which made the department store Izumi's first choice when shopping.

The sign advertising the half off deal for all fresh produce had caught their attention the moment they'd arrived to the unusually crowded store. Izumi felt her heart catapult into hyper drive as she took in the large group of strangers that had come to get their money's worth in groceries. Haruhi made a point of not looking at her on edge friend, knowing it didn't help Izumi in the least by pointing out her obvious anxiety. A smile plastered itself onto Izumi's face as she took a deep breath and began striding into the grocery aisle. Haruhi scurried along beside her, grabbing at the produce as they passed it lazily. Izumi made herself not freak out as they slowly treaded into more crowded areas, focusing all of her attention on what she needed to get before she could leave.

Neither girl had noticed that they'd lost each other until it was too late and dozens of people were separating them. Izumi looked around frantically for her fellow brunette as the crowd slowly thickened. More people arrived and Izumi could tell that it wasn't going to be an easy task to search for Haruhi and look for her groceries. Her stomach dropped significantly as she began scolding herself mentally for her silly anxiety, her mind telling her rationally that she was fine and didn't need to worry.

Izumi began wandering through the large store, pulling things off the shelves and placing them into her basket. Her heart and breathing relaxed when she finally left the fresh produce and large crowd behind as she dragged herself to the dry stock. She was rounding the corner into the pasta aisle when she collided with a large wall. Everything in her basket went flying before landing under the feet of passing bystanders, effectively destroying all of her groceries. Izumi jumped as a hand appeared in front of her, offering to help her up. Her eyes found a familiar face in front of her and she felt her cheeks become red when she realized she didn't remember his name. The silent giant gracefully pulled her back up to her feet, handing her the previously discarded basket.

"Thank you…" Izumi murmured as she took stock of what she needed to grab still.

A harsh breath of air puffed out of her lungs as she realized she was essentially going to have to start all over again. Her heart pattered in her chest at the thought of going back into the thickest part of the crowd. Biting her lip she glanced beside her, startled to see that the giant hadn't left yet.

'Doesn't he have anything else to do? Where is that blonde kid that supposed to be stuck to his hip?' Izumi asked herself feeling slightly bad for not remembering either of their names.

Izumi shook off her thoughts and began walking towards the dense crowd with her heart in her stomach. Nearly silent footsteps followed behind her, catching her slightly off guard. Green eyes frantically looked over her shoulder too see the silent giant following behind her. Biting her lip Izumi choose to just let it go, figuring her was just looking for his friend. Despite being taller than Haruhi, Izumi was still dwarfed by most of the crowd and she found it difficult to maneuver herself into the thickly packed crowd. A hand placed itself onto her back, startling her. She choked back a shriek of fear as she glanced up to see the boy slowly shouldering his way into the dense crowd. The people parted around the tall boy as people shuffled to get out of his path.

"Thanks." Izumi said as she found herself standing next to the fresh fruit and vegetables.

The grip on Izumi's heart unclenched slightly as people were slightly put off by the tall intimidating upperclassman. Breathing easier she expertly checked over the remaining produce, happy to see that there was still some unbruised and fresh vegetables. The hand on her back disappeared and Izumi glanced behind her to see the boy staring at something a little ways off. Squinting her eyes Izumi was vaguely able to make out a familiar blue sun dress that Haruhi liked wearing on days on.

"Mori! Izumi!" Haruhi called as she waved crazily, the group of hosts standing around her.

"Good job Takashi, you found Izumi!" A fairly cheery blonde claimed as he pounced on his cousin, smiling cutely.

The quiet giant seemed to relax completely as his cousin climbed up his back to sit on his usual perch of Mori's shoulders.

"Are you ok Umi?" Haruhi asked worriedly as she checked over her taller friend.

"I'm fine Haru, a little startled but I'll be fine." Izumi sighed as she basked in the familiarity of her friend's presence.

"Are you okay Princess!?" A blonde she identified as Tamaki exclaimed as he hugged her, "I know that crowds are scary, but do not fear! Daddy is here to protect you!"

Alarmed Izumi shoved the blonde away, shooting her friend a questioning look.

"I knew you would be freaked unless someone found you and the guys showed up a little bit after we got separated." Haruhi sighed as she glanced at the ground.

"We haven't seen you in a while Izumi-"

"-Don't say you've been avoiding us!"

Izumi sighed as the two mischievous twins wrapped their arms around her shoulders, effectively anchoring her to the ground. It had been a few weeks since the whole storm debacle. Thought they'd never admit it, Aoki and Izumi were truly trying to steer clear of the Hosts and their ever prying nature. Izumi figured that Aoki probably took the brunt of situation since she had school with them and was forced to associate with them due to Haruhi.

A weight slammed into Izumi's back, nearly taking her down if it wasn't for the twins keeping her upright.

"Are you avoiding us, Umi!" Honey all but sobbed as he clung to Izumi's back like a frightened monkey.

"I'm not avoiding anyone." Izumi huffed, moving her arms to grab Honey's flailing legs and secure him to her back. "I've just been busy."

"This place is a little bit out of the way for you, isn't it Haruhi? Is it safe to assume that it's closer to Ms. Izumi's residence?" Kyoya asked, scribbling in his little notebook.

"Can we go to your house Umi!" Honey cheered somewhere behind the brunettes.

"I-I don't know. Aoki might be napping and she'll be upset if I bring everyone home and wake her up." Izumi murmured, biting her lip.

"Oh come on Izumi-" Hikaru said as he appeared to her left.

"-We haven't talked in forever." Kaoru cooed as he popped up on Haruhi's right.

"We promise we'll be on our best behavior."

Izumi chewed on her lip, not believing for a second that they'd behave. Haruhi shrugged the younger twin's arm off, glaring at the two.

"You guys can't come over." She protested.

"If we come over it would keep me from digging around to find your address." Kyoya claimed, meeting Izumi's eyes.

"I suppose." Izumi grunted, a flush of unease rushing through her system at the thought of Kyoya digging around more.

* * *

"Izumi's house! Izumi's house!" Honey started cheering, bouncing around the two girls.

Izumi sighed as she walked up the stairs to the small studio her and her sister kept, ignoring the vaguely disgusted looks Haruhi's uppity friends were sending to the area. Her mind kept repeating that this wasn't a good idea and she'd regret it soon. Her key clicked in the lock and she shoved open the door, her groceries balanced precariously in her arms.

"I was starting to get worri-" Aoki stopped midsentence to stare open mouthed at the doorway of Hosts.

"Picked up some strays." Izumi muttered half-heartedly.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no." Aoki growled, waving her hands around the air desperately. "They are not staying here!"

"Well isn't the rude." Kyoya claimed, smirking at the older twin. "And here I thought we were getting on better terms."

Izumi walked away from the growing argument to their small fridge to put the groceries away. Honey followed her happily, easily ignoring the fight.

"This is a nice place Izumi." He stated as he watched her put away the crackers.

"Really?" Izumi chuckled, glancing over her shoulder to see the blonde and his cousin looking around the small one room apartment.

"Yeah! I like your Christmas lights!" Honey said as his eyes followed the trail of small lights around the walls. "Is that where you sleep!?"

Izumi followed his finger to the corner tucked behind a book case where her pink comforter was sticking out haphazardly. Aoki was on the other side of the bookcase in the space deemed the 'living room' sitting in front of the fire place glaring at the Hosts who were floating around their tiny home.

"Yeah, that's where we sleep." Izumi sighed.

"Who pays all the bills when your parents aren't here?" Honey asked innocently.

"Err…They send us money. Yeah, when they're away they always make sure to wire us money for bills and stuff." Izumi lied, smiling brightly at the tiny blonde.

"That's odd. I don't see anything of your parents here." Kyoya claimed lightly, smiling towards his clipboard.

Izumi froze, her mind searching for a reasonable lie.

"They don't live here. Since they travel a lot they just stay in a hotel or whatever. This is our space to do with as we want." Aoki claimed.

"It really isn't too bad money wise. The fireplace is our main heat source, and we like the Christmas lights so we don't usually use our overhead ones." Izumi rambled.

"My daughters are so smart!" Tamaki cheered as he practically tackled Aoki.

"We are not your daughters!" The light haired girl protested.

Izumi giggled lightly before turning back to putting the dishes away listening to the light conversation behind her. Honey decided to try and make himself useful, bouncing around the tiny kitchen and putting things away with her. Dimly Izumi was aware of Mori watching his cousin dash around the kitchen.

"Hey sis, what's for dinner?" Aoki asked, lounging against the bookshelf.

"Ummm…Veggie soup?" Izumi asked, glancing over her shoulder to her sister and Haruhi.

"Yes!" Aoki cheered, throwing her fist into that air. "We haven't had that in forever."

"That cause last time you ate six bowls and puked everywhere." Haruhi said, breaking into laughter when Izumi started giggling.

"You should take that as a compliment that I wanted to eat that much." Aoki huffed, looking away from her. "Usually your cooking sucks."

"Hey!" Izumi whined, whirling around to face her sister. "It does not."

"Remember the cake debacle?" Aoki asked watching as Haruhi flinched from the corner of her eyes. "You had half an eyebrow…and you nearly set Haruhi on fire."

"Tsk." Izumi muttered, turning back to the stove.

"So what do you guys do for fun here?" Tamaki asked excitedly, looking around the tiny room.

"Read." Haruhi said cheerfully, grabbing one of the novels she was working on from earlier. "They have a ton of books here."

"Boring!" The ginger twins sang as the repeatedly poked the fire.

"I'll laugh if you guys set yourselves on fire." Aoki sighed.

"Ahhhh, don't be like that Aoki!" The twins whined, shooting her doe eyes at her.

Rolling emerald eyes Aoki turned her attention towards her twin in the kitchen. A jolt of surprise shot down her spine as Honey latched onto Izumi, peering over her shoulder. Slowly a grin crawled across her lips at the familiarity the odd boy treated her sister with.

The air filled with the scent of cooking vegetables and Aoki felt herself relaxing as she glanced around the room at the odd group of people that were slowly forcing themselves into her life.

* * *

God I am really sucking up this story aren't I?

I know what I want to happen, and I have my plot down, it's just always been an issue of mine getting from one point of my story to another.

Blah.

Thanks for reading!

Review if you can

3 :D


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